The Curse of the Iron Flower
by Gunzou01
Summary: A simple ritual turns out be the the worst nightmare that they have ever experienced. Featuring Aqours from Love Live! Sunshine. Co-authored by GAT-X105VividPanzer.
1. Chapter 1

**Hiya! Gunzou here. This is my 2nd fanfic, featuring the Aqours group from Love Live Sunshine. This fanfic is co-authored by GAT-X105VividPanzer. Comments and suggestions are welcome.**

"Y-Yoshiko-chan, are you sure that this will work?"

The red-haired Ruby Kurosawa looks on while Yoshiko Tsushima is preparing for the ritual. The dark blue-haired girl has drawn a magic circle on the floor and was placing the candles around it.

"Don't worry, it will work! I do this every night as a part of my daily routine - and mind you, please call me Yohane! Yo-Ha-Ne!"

Yoshiko continued to work around the circle until a stern voice interrupted her from her activity.

"This is absolutely nonsense! Do not forget our true purpose of staying here at school… and that is to practice for our concert tomorrow!"

Another student with an air of elegance entered the room, looking at the two girls who were dumbfounded at her sudden arrival. Dia Kurosawa continued to walk to the middle and pulled Ruby aside.

"Didn't I tell you not to involve in such silly things, Ruby? Your actions might eventually bring shame into the Kurosawa Family!"

"B-But, Onee-chan… I-I was just watching…" a tearful Ruby replied.

"Kukuku… So you dare challenge my supernatural skills? Just wait until later! I will bring down the hammer of justice on you!" a confident Yoshiko answered.

"Hey! What's happening here? Oh, so this is what Yoshiko-chan was talking about!"

"A magic circle? Cool! So are we really doing this?"

"Guys, we're on break, so we mustn't waste our precious time."

Three new students entered the room. Chika Takami, You Watanabe and Riko Sakurauchi looked at Yoshiko's work intently.

"Oh, isn't it Chika-san, You-san and Riko-san. Indeed we are losing precious time. We only got permission from the school because I, the student council president, was the one who personally asked for this stay."

"Oh, come on, Kurosawa-senpai, what could go wrong? Let's take some slack off and have fun for a while… we promise that we will double our efforts after this! Or maybe Yoshiko-chan's charm might inspire us to do our best!" a cheerful Chika piped up.

"Fufufu… All right. You better hold on to your words, Chika. Make sure that the live tomorrow will be perfect! Failure will not be tolerated!"

The door slid open, making them look at the newcomers – Mari Ohara, Kanan Matsuura and Hanamaru Kunikida.

"Hi~! Our apologies for being late! We made sure that everything is all set for tonight's stay,"

"Oh, welcome! I'm so glad that everyone will witness Yohane's power tonight! I hope this will help us in our live tomorrow, for the things to come for our group!" an excited Yoshiko said. "I perform rituals like these by myself, but this time everyone will witness it! Tonight I perform a ritual on one of the dukes of hell, the demon Barbatos, which is said to predict the future and brings together friends and rulers! With that, we can do anything!

Everyone stared in silence, considering Yoshiko's words. You was the first one to speak up. "Then let's see what this can do! A little thrill won't hurt – and this kind of activity in the midsummer night – it can also be considered as a test of courage!

And so it was decided. Yoshiko, with the look of a little devil, stretched her arms before her companions.

"Okay! Without further ado, I will now start the ritual."


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2.

Yoshiko held a small tulip-shaped iron mace as she steps in the middle of her magic circle.

"What the hell? Where did you get that toy?" Dia again, voicing her disbelief.

"Do not disrespect the Iron Flower! It is real! It is ancient! It only cost me Y3000 on eBay!" Yoshiko shouted.

Of course she didn't mention that the seller, a "ChocolateManXOXO" told her that some... interesting stuff might happen. Yoshiko remembered his warning but shrugged. What's the worst that could happen?

She took a deep breath and started chanting.

"EIHWAZ HAGALAZ GEBO MANNAZ DAGAZ"

A moment of silence passed by.

"Er…is that it?" You asked. "Was there anything that will pop out, or to happen around here?"

Dia scoffed and took Ruby's hand. "I told you, this is nonsense! Come on now, we must waste no time for our practice!"

"Wait, Kurosawa-senpai, could we at least compliment Yoshiko-chan for her efforts? She must have at least put some thought on it," Chika worriedly called after.

"Uh… Everyone, I-I think something is happening…"

The girls turned at Yoshiko.

The iron mace at her hand has crumbled into small pieces. Then the lights went out.

"Barbatos answered my summons!" Yoshiko exclaimed. "I knew something will happen!"

Then came the sound of rumbling, followed by the shaking of the whole building.

"Earthquake!" You cried out. "Everyone, duck and seek cover under the tables!"

All of them ducked down under the tables, covering their heads. You clenched her teeth as she looked at her group mates. Chika, Kanan and Riko were ducking side-by-side, under their respective tables. Dia is scolding a wailing Ruby while Mari and Hanamaru are keeping still. The shaking rose in intensity and it seemed that it will never stop.

After a full five minutes everything went into a halt. You slowly opened her eyes and let herself become adjusted into the darkness.

This can't be.

The classroom that they were in was now an old-style classroom. Debris littered the place and the other girls were laying on the floor, unconscious.

"Chika-chan! Kanan-senpai! Kurosawa-senpai! Please wake up!"

A groggy Chika rubbed her eyes. "Has it stopped…? Wait. Is everyone alright? Where's Yoshiko-chan?"

Kanan, Riko, Hanamaru and Dia and Ruby sat up. Mari is already walking around the room, inspecting every detail.

"It doesn't smell like seawater around here…" Kanan observed.

"Indeed, it doesn't," Mari replied. "Instead it was replaced with a dreadful and heavy feeling – one that is similar to one of the industrial metal groups that I listen to."

"Is everyone alright?" You asked.

Each of the girls nodded. Chika, taking note of Yoshiko's absence, stood up. "We better find Yoshiko-chan! She might have been somewhere, taken away by whoever made this to our school! Let's take a look around outside."

"None of this would have happened if only she had never entertained this kind of disaster!" Dia sulkily muttered. "She'd better know the way back, or else-!"

The rest of them stood up.

Kanan moved towards the leftmost entrance of the classroom and opened the door. "Alright, I will take a look at what happened outside. Maybe this is a hallucination, or-"

The last thing Chika have seen was her childhood friend falling below whatever lies beyond the door, followed by a short scream. She rushed towards the doorway to see what had happened.

Chika's knees went weak as she started trembling uncontrollably.

Kanan had fallen some eight feet below, into a small pit of glass shards, long spikes and wood splinters. Her body, horribly impaled, was convulsing violently.

"KANAN-CHAN!"

The rest of the girls rushed to the scene and screamed at the sight below. Kanan, as she was slipping away, groans pitifully as she tries to raise her badly-mangled hand as an effort to ask for help.

However, the weight of her body made it worse. She sank further into the spikes, severing her arteries and spurting a fountain of blood upwards. Chika, who is in the closest proximity, was splattered in the face.

Everyone had lost their wits. In a rush they bolted out towards the other side of the classroom, terrified at the scene that just happened. Meanwhile, Kanan's eyes rolled and her hand went limp, as she resigns to her fate.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3.

It must have been the human reaction for such panic that made them bolt out of the door and into the dark hallways of the school that they are unfamiliar with. Running as fast as they could, leaping across small gaps in the floors, the group managed to get far away from where Kanan had fallen.

Dia's legs were the first to give out. She sat in the middle of the hallway, panting. Mari motioned to the other girls to stop and to take a breather.

Chika, still delusional, went towards Mari and grasped her shoulders. "K-Kanan-chan… Is she really…?"

Mari only looked at her with sad eyes. "I don't want to believe what happened, but it seemed real. I'm sorry, but we have to find where Yohane is and to locate the way out."

Her response only angered Chika. "HOW COULD YOU-?! Kanan-chan… Kanan-chan is not dead! It's not real! I've got to go back to her! She needs my help!" Upon spouting those words, she turned and left.

"Chika-san! Get a grip, will you?" an equally angry Dia yelled at her. "At this rate, with your attitude, you could as well lead us to our deaths! You better shut up and listen to Mari's advice!"

Chika, taken aback, stopped in her tracks. "I…I just wanted to see Kanan-chan! If she really died, I want to see her!" Tears stream down from her misty eyes. "I want to believe that this is all part of bad dream… that we are actually at Uranohoshi!" She slumped down, wailing. Mari approached her and gave comfort.

Witnessing the whole scene, Hanamaru is also comforting a tearful Ruby while Riko and You fell silent. Dia, looking down, mumbles in a low voice, so that the others won't know what she's saying. "Where the hell is Yohane? When we get out of here I'm going to sue her ass off!"

Hanamaru, while stroking Ruby's head, spoke up. "If we're going to find Yoshiko-san, how are we going to do it? Wandering aimlessly around this place would be dangerous. We need to have some sort of a plan."

"She's right. What happened earlier is enough proof that this is not a joke. We can't afford to put another one of us in danger." You, while pondering over Hanamaru's question.

"How about the rest of us stay here while Dia and I look around?" Mari proposed. "We can go in groups of two to three, searching for rooms and any new passages that might reveal something. Then we all proceed when we have found Yohane-san or the way out."

The juniors didn't object. Mari and Dia started their search, walking slowly away from the group. They peered inside classrooms, taking any item that may be of use for their survival.

"You almost lost your cool back then, Dia-san…" Mari told her with a little hint of a giggle.

"Wh-why do you even care about it?" Dia replied, blushing.

"Well, it is rare for the President to become like this. Don't worry, only eight of us saw the whole scene. And I doubt they will tell it to others. We need solidarity as a group, right?"

The two girls came in front of an old storage room. Mari looked closely and started to inspect. The door looked heavy. She tried to turn the handle.

"Look, Dia-san, it is unlocked. Let's see what is in store for us."

Dia tried to peer inside the room. Tools were strewn around the floor – mops, brooms, nets, and other boxes stacked on one side. Mari wasted no time rummaging on the boxes. She brought out sheets of cloth and some boxes of safety matches and candles. Dia helped her with the haul as they searched for more useful items.

An unusual figure caught her eye. She approached Mari and pointed it to her.

"Mari, look over there. There is something in the corner."

A small being was sitting by the shadows. Its head, resembling a piece of pink candy, turned towards them.

Mari approached the creature. "Dia! Look, it's so cute! It looks like some kind of dessert – it makes me want to eat it!

"Yeah, yeah…" Dia, rolling her eyes.

"Say, what if we take it along with us? Maybe Chika-san might be distracted for a while with it – it may also help them calm down!" Mari said, facing Dia.

"Sure, I don't mind, but I hope it won't make Ruby scared or whatnot. That little sister of mine is already afraid of dogs - "

Unbeknownst to Mari the little creature began moving. Dia saw the shadow, eyes wide with shock and fear.

Dia stopped talking abruptly and tackled Mari down.

"D-Dia?! What are you doing?" Mari said in surprise.

"Mari! Look behind you! That creature of yours just tried to snap your body in half!

Mari glanced behind her. The small creature had now transformed into a hideous, caterpillar-like monster with a face resembling a psychotic clown's. It narrowly missed Mari's upper torso in an attempt to devour her.

"Oh shi- Mari! It's going to attack again! RUN!

The two of them went running outside the storage room, while carrying what they have found inside. The monster, due to the narrow space on the hallway crashed into the wall as it attempted to chase after its would-be meal. Dia and Mari, in an attempt to stall the monster, went dashing in and out of the classrooms. The persistent monster followed suit, only to be hurt by repeatedly crashing side to side. As they exited the classroom that they first went in Dia slammed the door shut. The monster crashed into the door and fell silent.

Panting, they reached the place where their juniors are. You, upon waking up, shook Chika and the other girls."

"Oh, they're back! Wait. Did something happen?"

Dia and Mari immediately dropped the items that they were carrying and slumped down. "Something went after us! I don't know if we managed to escape. It tried to kill Mari!" Dia, while gasping for air.

"What?! First was the pitfall, then you were chased down? This place is crazy!" You blurted out in astonishment.

Hanamaru raised her hand shyly. "Um... May Maru say something? Maru thinks that staying in one place would also be dangerous. How about we move out and find another?"

"That's a sound idea, Hanamaru-san. We better get these things that we found and search for a nearby room."

"Wait. How about Chika-san? She might not be able catch up in her state," Riko asked with worry.

Chika smiled at her weakly. "Don't worry about me, Riko-chan. I will try my best not to pull everyone down."

"That settles it then," Dia declared with an air of contentment. "Girls, get the items and let's get moving! Mari, is everything good at your-"

What Dia saw was not Mari, but the face of a caterpillar-like monster bearing down at her. In its mouth was Mari's body, apparently trying to chomp her head off. Dia froze with fear.

"M-Mari..."

"HANAMARU! GET KUROSAWA-SENPAI AND LET'S GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!

Hanamaru instantly heeded You's command and immediately snatched Dia before the monster could make a move. Once again the girls are on the run.

The monster finished chomping Mari's head off and flew after the fleeing group, leaving Mari's headless corpse behind.


End file.
